AuthorTopic: Recording with Alesis DM10 (Read 15069 times)

Hey guys, i am new to the forum and the Alesis DM10 drum set... The kit is amazing, it feels great, but i have some quick questions regarding recording with the DM10...

I have read most of the instructions in the manual and i am trying to figure out the module functions the best way i can. I am discovering something new every day but i still have a lot of things to learn...

One of the main reasons I bought the kit is home studio recording. I want to be able to record drums with the best sound quality possible without spending a fortune on mics and eq systems.

Here are a couple of questions for the DM10 users out there:

1. What is the easiest way to record with the best sound possible and tranfer it to my computer?2. Can i transfer my recorded custom sequences from the module on my computer/laptop via usb?3. Can i record in any other way and still be able to transfer the recording on my computer for mixing/editing?

I'm no wiz at this stuff but I'll give you my 2 cents. I don't believe most people doing home recordings would use the audio samples stored in the DM10. Two reasons. They can only easily be transferred to a PC or Mac as a stereo mix, and they are 16 bit samples. It's a lot more flexible to have each drum seperately recorded. And most people that record at home prefer higher quality 24bit samples. I think the majority of people recording at home would use a sequencer, like Cubebase, Sonar, Pro Tool etc. And they would use a add-on program called a VST like BFD2 or Superior Drums. They would record the midi information that the DM10 sends out and it would drive the drum module inside the sequencer.

1. What is the easiest way to record with the best sound possible and tranfer it to my computer?2. Can i transfer my recorded custom sequences from the module on my computer/laptop via usb?3. Can i record in any other way and still be able to transfer the recording on my computer for mixing/editing?Thanks in advance, Alex

First: Welcome to the forum, Alex!

To round Oldsneaker's post up - There are two ways to record your play. The first one is to record the sounds that come with the DM10 via the stereo out to whatever-you-like-to-record-audio-with.

The second method is to record only the MIDI notes you are playing and send them via USB to your laptop/computer. As Oldsneaker stated you need a so called "Digital Audio Workstation" like Cubase, FruityLoops or ProTools on your PC/Mac to receive and save the MIDI notes and to combine them back with drum audio samples. This is the most flexible way and works just as well with the notes you have recorded in the DM10 sequencer.

Thanks for your replies, they certainly cleared out some things for me.

Just to simplify things, at first i should get a "Digital Audio Workstation" program (for example Cubase or Sonar) and add a drums add-on program on my computer. Then i have to connect my DM10 module with my computer via a USB cable and record using the drum software directly on my computer. Did i get that right?

What I usually do is record both the line outs from the DM10 and the MIDI information into a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) program. This would take the place of recording into the DM10 sequencer, but if you really wanted to, you could record a sequence in the DM10 and play it back later into your computer, using the DAW software. By recording the MIDI data, you could re-record your performance with either a) another DM10 kit or b) a VST drum program like BFD.. I find that even if I use a VST, I tend to mix in some DM10 sound to make things a little thicker.

If you are on a budget for software, check out Reaper for a DAW (what I use and love), and check out the deal on BFD-Eco (BFD's little brother) at Musician's Friend ($50 and includes BFD Greatest Hits) http://www.dmdrummer.com/index.php?topic=811.0

I found a tutorial online that I was able to use to get separate tracks out of BFD and it's got a lot of potential..(They use Addictive drums, but the procedure is similar) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9Bzk-L7pAAYou could easily spend a week just tweaking the drum mix this way..

At the end of the day, it's really up to what you want the drums to sound like. Don't freak out over bit depth, etc. if you're happy with the drum sounds. If you keep the MIDI track, you can always change it later

I don't have access to the module yet (at drummers house) but am looking to record drums into a digital 4 track device such as the Micro BR. In very simple terms I should be able to connect the AUX OUT output to my Micro BR and record the kit playing live.

Question is: The AUX OUT outputs are labeled 1 and 2 and not Left and Right, does that mean I can connect 1 cable to 1 AUX output and get the whole kit in a mono output, and if I connect both AUX outputs to the Micro BR will I get the kit in stereo?

Also, if I have an mp3 player/guitar connected to the AUX IN phono inputs, will my recording from the AUX OUT have just the drum sounds or the drum sounds and the mp3 player/guitar? Im hoping its just the drum sounds.

I never noticed that it's "1" and "2". I record with Aux Out "1" and "2", it performs like L/R channels.

Some people set their kit's output up so that the kick for example is going one place, and the rest of the kit is going another. Maybe that's why "1" and "2".

hmm... interesting question.

The Main Out is a stereo output bus with a left and right channel. Aux channels are separated and typically not stereo, so that a "L/R" labelling makes no sense. You could name them "A/B", "Day/Nite" or "Charly/Nicole" if you want to Or you could have 3 of them, or 5...

And I guess anything that goes into the AUX IN will also come out of the MAIN OUT, so if I have a guide guitar connected to AUX IN to play through the drummers headphones, I won't be able to separate that guide guitar from the Drums coming out of MAIN OUT?

And I guess anything that goes into the AUX IN will also come out of the MAIN OUT, so if I have a guide guitar connected to AUX IN to play through the drummers headphones, I won't be able to separate that guide guitar from the Drums coming out of MAIN OUT?

Yep. AUX IN is routed to MAIN and therefor hearable on MAIN OUT and headphone out simultaneously. You could route all your instrument sounds to the AUX OUTs only, but then you'll loose all effects.

There's certainly some need for better audio routing in the module, but I use a cheap little 8-channel mixer for such purposes (and other things like monitoring) because it gives me more flexibility.

Hello Im new around here, i thought that this might be of interest with regards to recording midi drums in Cubase 6. After the recording Cubase will allow you to take the midi file (on a single track), and then "open it " and once this is done you are left with separate tracks for each instrument ie snare, bass drum, hi-hat, etc, on their own tracks (multi-tracked automatically), with each instrument having their own track with EQ, plug-ins, panning, the lot. Isnt that great?! Allows one to tweak your kit just as you would if you were using a proper kit/recording session. I hope I explained this ok? Good luck and have fun.

Hello Im new around here, i thought that this might be of interest with regards to recording midi drums in Cubase 6. After the recording Cubase will allow you to take the midi file (on a single track), and then "open it " and once this is done you are left with separate tracks for each instrument ie snare, bass drum, hi-hat, etc, on their own tracks (multi-tracked automatically), with each instrument having their own track with EQ, plug-ins, panning, the lot. Isnt that great?! Allows one to tweak your kit just as you would if you were using a proper kit/recording session. I hope I explained this ok? Good luck and have fun.

Yep, the Drum Editor in Cubase is a cool thing.

One note/addition: After the split you can tweak MIDI-related things like velocity, pitch or note transpose but you don't have instantly access to audio related workflow like EQ'ing. For this you first have to connect a VST instrument like Superior Drummer or BFD to that MIDI tracks.